Improved railway-car spring



BARRY & FRANKLIN.

Gar Spring. No. 98,1210. Patented Dec. 21,1869.

FIG. 2.

. 7 w H n m I a I E ////////w/ MM W .fl v I A A g llNiTED STATES ATENT FFICE.

IMPROVED RAILWAY-CAR SPRING.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent N0. 98,E40, dated December 21, 1869.

T0 at whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, WILLIAM BARRY and GEORGE FRANKLIN, of Philadelphia, county of Philadelphia, State of Pennsylvania, have invented an Improved Oar-Spring, of which the following is a specification.

Our invention consists of a spring of peculiar construction, which is especially applicable to cars, although it can be used wherever ordinary elliptical or other steel springs are employed; and our invention further consists of the combination .of a series of the said springs with a box on which, by a peculiar arrangement of bearings, the springs are maintained in a state of suspension, so that they may act to the best advantage, all of which will be fully described hereinafter.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is vertical section of our improved car-spring; Fig. 2, a transverse vertical section; Fig. 3, a sectional plan; Fig. 4, a side view of the spring proper, and Fig. 5 a modification of Fig.

It will be advisable, in the first instance, to refer to the peculiar construction of the spring proper, as represented by Fig. 4, This spring consists of two bent bars, A and A, of steel, and two internal bars, B B. Each of the bars A and A. is bent abruptly at x, midway between its opposite end, the ends themselves being also bent, so that those of one bar will fit into those of the other, as shown in the drawings, and so that the spring may have opposite concavities, y y, for a purpose rendered apparent hereinafter. The bar A is so arranged that its ends shall compress those of the bar A, and the latter shall exert a pressure against the bars B and B, the whole being thus confined together. In order to maintain the bars in their proper relative position laterally, the ends of the bar A may have small projections adapted to recesses in the ends of the bar A, while projections on the latter may fit into recesses in the bars B and B.

In the modification, Fig. 5, additional bars a and a are adapted and secured to the bars B B, so as to increase the rigidity of the spring, and to these bars others may be added, if desired. 7

WVhen a very light spring is required, the intermediate bars, B an d B, may be dispensed with, in which case the entire spring can be composed of the bent bars A and A.

The springs described above are cheap and simple as regards construction, and can be used wherever ordinary elliptical or other springs are employed. They are especially applicable, however, in the construction of the box-spring, which is represented in Figs. 1, 2, and 3, and which we will now proceed to describe.

D is a cast-iron box, to the open under side of which is loosely fitted a plate, E, through which and through the top 6 of the box pass the bolts F F, which prevent the plate E from moving outward beyond a given limit, but permit it to slide inward to an extent permitted by the springs. The heads of the bolts are contained and can slide in recesses f, formed in projections h on the end e of the box, as shown in Fig. 1.

In the present instance four springs such as have been described above are arranged within the box, two above and two below but this number may be increased or diminished.

The concavities or recesses 3 of two springs are adaptedto and bear against the rounded rib m of the plate E, and recesses 3 of the other two springs bear against a similar rounded rib, m, on the end of the box D, while a loose round bar, a, is arranged between the two sets of springs, and adapted to the recesses y of both sets, as clearly shown in Fig. 1.

It will be seen that the only vertical bearing-points of the springs against the box D or plate E are on the rib any of the latter and the rib m of the former, while the bearing of the two sets of springs is against theintermediate pin, a, and this pin and projections tend to maintain the several springs in their proper relative position within the box-in fact, the springs may be said to be in a state of suspen sion in the box, as there can be no abrasion of the springs against each other or against the box when the springs yield and recoil.

Thebox-spring described above is especially applicable to railroad-cars, although it can be used to advantage for other purposes.

\Ve claim 1. A spring composed of the two bars A and A, bent and adapted to each other, substantially as setv forth.

2. A spring composed of the said barsA and A and intermediate bars, B and B,'with or without additional bars are.

3. The combination of a series of the said springs with a box, D, and sliding plate E,

4:. The rounded rib m on the box and the similar rib, m, on the plate E, the said ribs being adapted to the cavities y y of the springs, as described.

5. The intermediate loose rod, n, adapted to i the cavities 3 yfof the two sets of springs, as

specified.

In testimony whereof we have signed our 

